Putin to make Middle East tour on June 25-26

The busy program of the visit mirrors the region’s significance to Russia

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MOSCOW, June 24 (Itar-Tass) —— President Vladimir Putin will have a Middle East tour (Israel, Palestinian lands and Jordan) on June 25-26.

“The busy program of the visit mirrors the region’s significance to Russia,” Presidential Aide for International Affairs Yuri Ushakov told a Sunday press briefing. “We aim at further strengthening of Russian positions in the Middle East,” he said.

“The foreign political activity of the president is intensifying,” he said. “Moscow intends to continue the strengthening of cooperation with Israel. Bilateral relations have been good enough. That would be the first visit of the Russian president to Israel in seven years. So, this visit is topical and necessary,” he said.

The Palestinian lands will be the second leg of the regional tour. Putin will negotiate with Palestinian National Authority (PNA) President Mahmoud Abbas and attend the opening of the Russian Science and Culture Center in Bethlehem.

Jordan will be last leg of the tour. Putin will meet with King Abdullah II and attend the opening of a hotel for Russian pilgrims on the bank of the River Jordan where Christ was baptized. The land on which the hotel is built is a property of Russia.